German-American Discourse on Politics and Culture

September 10, 2017

True Face of Alternative for Germany (AfD) Party revealed in Weidel eMail

She was supposed to be the "moderate" face of the right-wing nationalist AfD: a PhD management consultant who is in a lesbian relationship. She comes across in her stump speech and debates as a mainstream conservative, more concerned about the role of EZB (European Central Bank) than in deporting immigrants. As the public face of her party, Alice Weidel could appeal to right-wing CDU voters who are not happy with some of Angela Merkel's policies:

Weidel's poise and her knack for sidestepping the racist and xenophobic remarks by its leading politicians has led her critics to believe that her main role is to lure voters otherwise put off by rhetoric that smacks of the country's Nazi past. "I have no use for nationalistic ranting," Weidel told the Südwest Presse in 2016. In subsequent interviews she has described the AfD's tendency toward far-right sentiments as problematic and a distraction from important discussions. Instead of ranting about the refugee crisis or Islamist terrorists, Weidel opts for a calm tone. Photos of refugee suffering "broke her heart," she said on a national talk show in 2016 - but pointed out that Germany couldn't help everyone.

But this "moderate" image of Alice Weidel has been shaken by the discovery of a 2013 email, sent by "Alice Weidel" to a small group of friends:

"Lille" was Alice Weidel's nickname at the time. Here is my translation:

(The reason why we are overrun by culturally foreign people such as Arabs, Sinti and Roma is the systematic destruction of civil society as a possible counterweight from the enemies of the constitution by whom we are governed. These pigs are nothing more than marionettes of the WWII Allied victors whose job is to suppress the German Volk through mini-civil wars in our urban centers induced by this foreign infiltration. Just follow this link concerning Germany's "sovereignty". The fact that Germany is not at all sovereign can be seen in the repulsive fatalism of our policies - such as expropriation due to the bailout of the euro, corrupt judiciary (the German constitutional court).... More on this later. )

Weidel has attempted to block publication of this email, claiming that it is Fake News.

Under normal circumstances, a blatantly racist email such as this would turn voters away from the AfD and torpedo Weidel's chances of taking a seat in the Bundestag. But, as we saw with the candidacy of Donald Trump - whose poll numbers soared with every racist or sexist comment he made -, there is a sizable contingent of voters who are thrilled by such incendiary statements. My guess is that the AfD's support will surge in the final days leading up to the national election.